New Student FAQ

This FAQ has been compiled to help incoming Indian graduate students. No claims are made for its correctness or accuracy. The conditions encountered by any student and also the expenses, could greatly vary from student to student. This has been compiled keeping an average Indian graduate student in mind, and is therefore very specific to this breed of students and that too at UH only.

The ranking varies every year, and it varies for every department. The current ranking of UH may be obtained from one of the national ranking lists like www.usnews.com .It was relatively easier to get funding here, but due to the sudden increase in the number of incoming students, it is becoming harder by the day, though getting an on campus job can be easily managed. If you don't expect to get admission into one of the better schools, UH might be a better bet.
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Very few come to UH with funding.You can probably come here and then look for funding in the department. One always stands a better chance if he/she directly talks to the professors. UH is a pretty big campus, and there a lot of on campus jobs available. Most of the on campus jobs fetch a tuition fee waiver along with a basic monthly salary. So even if you don't get a funding from the department, you can easily manage with an on campus job.
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There are four types of assistantships you can get. 1. Teaching Assistantship (TA), 2. Research Assistantship (RA), 3. Instructional Assistantship (IA) and 4. Graduate Assistantship (GA). Only a few lucky ones, get an offer for RA or TA with their admission. Most of the professors will not fund you till you have talked and convinced them personally of your virtues.It is relatively easier to get a TA than a RA. Research Assistants are usually hired based on their previous academic performance and also their experience. Your GRE and TOEFL scores have very little to do with it. TAs on the other hand are relatively easier to get, and they have more to do with your GRE and TOEFL scores. Also you have to convince the professor who will recommend you to the department, you are good enough. IA and GA on the other hand are positions where the students are selected on basis of particular skills. These positions are available in any UH department where they would want the assistant to do their daily work, like System Administration, Data Entry , tutoring etc., and they fetch a basic salary which comes along with a tuition waiver which may be as good as any TA or RA. UH being a pretty big campus, offers scores of such jobs in various departments like, Psychology, Optometry, Biology, Learning Support Services etc. All the information regarding the various assitantships in UH can be found here.
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You need not arrive very early, unless your classes start early, or you need to meet someone.Usually there is no one available on campus between the semesters, even if you want to search for a job, or talk to some professors.It would be ideal if you land here about 1 or 2 weeks before classes start.That way you will arrive at the same time as many of the new students and can go around looking for room mates, and start the process of getting settled simultaneously.
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On-campus housing are a bit expensive than Off-campus housing (around $100-$150 more) but are more comfortable. On-campus apartments are close to the University and hence a lot more safer than Off-campus housing. Most of the girls and those students who have funding prefer to stay on-campus (in Cambridge Oaks or Cullen Oaks).All the questions regarding on-campus living can be found here. Most of the students who come without funding prefer to stay off-campus as it is definitely cheaper
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Most students who come here, just stay with others for a week or so before they can find roommates and rent an apartment. . Even if you don't know anybody, please send us an E-mail to the Graduate Indian Students Organization, and we will arrange to put you up temporarily somewhere. Or if you want to stay in the hostel, you can get temporary place there for a couple of days. But not for long I think. As soon as school starts, they close down the temporary accommodation and you have either move out or move in for the whole semester, which is pretty expensive and no one does. But as a last resort, if no one is willing to put you up (which is a rarity), you can take up temporary accommodation there.
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Yes, someone can be there to pick you up, but you have to let someone/GISO know well in advance. Fill in the pickup request form and one of the pickup and accomodation committee member will be in contact with you and will make sure that someone is there to pick you up.
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Most of us usually carry one hand baggage and a couple of check in luggage. Carry all your important documents, like your passport, I-20, university acceptance letter etc., with you in the hand baggage. Also carry clothes for a couple of days, and some daily requirements. About clothes, Houston has hot and humid summers, which last most of the year. So pile up your summer clothes. The winters here are short and not very harsh. It almost never goes below freezing. So a couple of sweaters and a leather jacket should see you through the winter.Jackets are exorbitantly priced here, and it would be advisable to get it from India. Don't stock up on your formals also, as you will be rarely wearing them frequently as students. Get your cooking utensils, frying pan, Pots if you can, etc. Get a pressure cooker, everybody gets one. it helps cook faster, esp. cook Indian food. Maybe a rice cooker is a good idea, but that has a voltage problem. Remember the difference in voltages before you put hair dryers, iron boxes and what not into your luggage. If you get masalas and dals, it might save you that grocery for a month, but I don't think its really worth it. Anyway, pack some of those masalas if you have the urge to. You get almost all the masalas, and other Indian items here for a pretty decent price. Get some stationary (not paper), but other stuff like stapler, scissors, pens, etc. but not too much.Audio tapes are one thing you would get from India. Then, get whatever you feel like. As far as money is concerned, assuming that you get a TA or any other "instate" job, you don't need much money. About $5000 would be enough to take care of your instate fees ($3500 approx) and about $1000 to set you up here till you get paid. Now, if you don't get a TA or a job immediately, you would be needing at least $9000/$10000 because you would be out-of-state fees($6000 approx.) for your would have to manage life for at least a couple of months till you find some part-time job. The fee quoted above are approximate values considering 3 courses or 9 credit hours per semester. They are subject to change every year and change from department to department. All the information regarding Graduate Tution fee, University cost and financial aid can be found here.
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A moderately priced apartment will cost you between 200 to 300. There are scores of such apartments around the campus, and you will be sharing the apartment with 2 or 3 people. Most of the on campus housing will cost between 250 to 400. An average student spends about 200, for his/her utilities and groceries.
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Just go to the Orientation and they will tell you everything, But here are a couple of things that I can think of. First of all, go to your department and find out what courses you have to take and register for them. Usually there are a lot of students in fall and very few courses. Most of the good courses get full even before you can arrive here. Also, if you delay registration you may end up paying a late registration fee of $20. Once, you've registered, go to the financial services office in E-Cullen and pick up your fee bill. Find out where you can make the UH-ID and get that done. You will need your fee-bill and maybe your passport. Once you have a UH-ID, that helps as a picture ID until you get a license or something. Then, go to the admissions office in E-Cullen and change your address else, all your letters will still keep going to India. Among other important things, find out if the orientation people will take you there and also to get your Texas ID or driving license. Then, start a bank account, by default at the University Center, and put all that money, checks that you've got from India. And of course, Run around for that job and if you still manage to find time, make yourself familiar with the campus.Go and apply for a Social Security Number (SSN) which you can only obtain if you have any on-campus job or internship. You have a long long time to spend here and many things like telephone, internet ,electricty connections and banks accounts outside UH campus requires your SSN . Look around for roommates and also apartments. Try to start your apartment hunting as soon as you get here, if you plan to stay near school. So initially, don't worry too much about your courses. You will have a lot of time to catch up on them. Try to get all these things done. Visit UH's official webisite at newly opened 'Welcome India' webpage to get all the information specially uploaded for Indian students.
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A list of useful things that are common for most students coming to UH/Houston/USA can be seen at Checklist of Items. This is by no means elaborate enough to cover everyone's needs and is to be treated as a guideline. The idea here is to make sure that when you come tothe US, you are prepared to live independently and comfortably.
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